What we are witnessing is a stampede for the centre right of British politics . . . and it is evident that few of the fresh ideas are coming from the left. By Martin Bright

It is easy to despise the Liberal Democrats. Their opponents exploit their internal contradictions, dismissing them as sandal-wearing no-hopers or electoral opportunists. The media are ruthless, recognising that the people hardest to love are those that crave love most.

As they rattled around their conference in Blackpool, Lib Dem delegates looked as if they didn't like themselves much either. With the grass roots in revolt against modernisers, perceived as moving the party to the right, their post-election jamboree turned sour.

Four years away from the next election, the leadership has opened discussion about core values: are they tax-and-spend redistributors or economic liberals, public sector fundamentalists or privatisers, diehard Europhiles or something more sceptical? Throwing the pack of cards into the air might have seemed bold, but by midweek the move had failed horribly, with pretty much everyone questioning the leadership of Charles Kennedy, himself included.

The problem of a centre party will always be one of definition. At its fringes, the left of the Liberal Democrats is indistinguishable from old Labour and the right is indistinguishable from old Tory. The stresses of holding such a broad coalition were tested to breaking point and the consensus is that the conference was a disaster. Attempts by the front bench to cap EU spending and part-privatise the Post Office were defeated by a party in open revolt against a tendency described by the Lib Dem peer Lord Greaves as "Blairite modernisers".

It is tempting therefore to dismiss the Liberal Democrats. It would be unwise to do so yet. Those in the other two main parties thinking seriously about politics recognise this. Ken Clarke has warned that the Tories could be overtaken as the second party, while Peter Hain has sought to disabuse disgruntled Labour supporters of the belief that the Lib Dems are now a party of the left.

Though both are trying to scare traditional voters back to the fold, there is also truth in what they are saying. Clarke and Hain know they cannot sneer: nearly six million people voted Lib Dem at the election - and not all of them can be stupid.

Beyond the whispering over Kennedy's leadership, the Lib Dems are beginning to take themselves seriously. The Orange Book, a collection of dissident essays published before the election, is silly in parts - the concept of "tough liberalism", for example, does not stand up to scrutiny. But it has become the basis of a genuine philosophical debate about the role of the market in the public sector. As one Orange Booker told me: "We have to confront people in this party with the consequences of our views. This is potentially far more revolutionary than new Labour."

Whatever the complaints of the "progressive" rump in Blackpool, it seems clear that the Liberal Democrats' brief flirtation with the left is over. The coming generation, represented by Nick Clegg, Chris Huhne and David Laws, will eventually succeed in wrestling the party back to its Liberal roots. Clegg was given a roasting when he suggested that the NHS should be "broken up", but there is little doubt that more proposals such as this will flow from a commitment to decentralise.

What we are witnessing is a stampede for the centre right of British politics. Labour will have to think hard about how it responds. Throw into the mix the "new localism" floated by "New Model Party" Conservatives, or the collection of centrist essays published by the Bow Group, and it is evident that few of the fresh ideas in British politics are coming from the left.

Labour is in danger of becoming an ideological wasteland. The Prime Minister's pre-conference message was an exercise in tired rhetoric: "securing the future" and "managing change" are soundbites of despair. The policy commitments are equally dour: school reform for the sake of it, the meaningless "Respect" agenda, "care outside hospitals" when the insides of many are still in serious trouble, an ill-defined programme of welfare reform. Alan Milburn has set out the terms of this steady-as-she-goes, Blairite purist approach. Meanwhile, internal analysis of Labour's key marginals is said to show they are vulnerable to the Tories, arguing that a policy shift to the left would be potentially catastrophic.

Party managers in Brighton will draw the lesson from the Lib Dems that frank discussion of the future is suicidal. They will retreat further into control-freakery. But this will only delay the debate that must happen if the party is to renew itself in time for the next election.

- Last week's column contained allegations about David Blunkett intervening to inquire about his son's exam results during his time as secretary of state for education. As these were subsequently denied by Blunkett and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority has refused to hold an inquiry into the matter, we will be making Freedom of Information requests to the QCA and the Department for Education and Skills in order to get to the truth. There is more to come yet.

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